HAVANA: Cuba is grappling with a severe economic crisis, with growing numbers of people relying on charity-run community kitchens to eat. The country of about 11 million has been hit by US fuel sanctions, soaring inflation and dwindling government resources, while a collapse in tourism, a mainstay of the economy, has hurt livelihoods and left many unable to meet basic needs.
For decades, Cuba’s socialist government provided free education, health care, subsidized food and public-sector jobs, and the country has a literacy rate of about 99%. The state once spent more than $2 billion a year importing staples such as rice, beans, powdered milk, chicken, cooking oil and eggs. Fuel shortages have since disrupted transport, power generation and farming, while rising prices have put essentials out of reach for many. With state finances depleted, authorities have been unable to maintain earlier subsidies.
At a food distribution center run by a charity in Havana, hundreds of people line up daily before the doors open at 7 a.m. Some arrive the night before carrying plastic plates and sleep on the street to secure a place. Fernando Fernandez, a 71-year-old retired security guard, said he is living through some of the hardest days of his life. Marlies Pons, a 34-year-old mother of five, said the meals served there ensure her children have at least one full meal a day.
Religious groups, international aid organizations and the United Nations are supporting the kitchens, which cook rice, eggs and pasta in large pots, serve chicken when available and provide bottled chocolate milk for young children. The international community has expressed concern over how long Cuba’s population will remain caught between sanctions and economic decline.